Lori-Quint Platinum Home in Georgia

This is the first LEED Platinum home in Athens. Designed by Lori Bork Newcomer, principal of Bork Architectural Design, Inc., the 2,632 square-foot home blends native materials to maintain neighborhood context and contemporary design to suit the aesthetics of owners Lori and Quint Newcomer. Lori and Quint self-contracted the build for about $125 per square foot and, perhaps more impressively, the home uses about the same amount of energy as one a third the size.

The exterior is completed with Tennessee fieldstone, stucco, and white clapboard, while the traditional gable facade is made with glass to allow natural light to the kitchen, living, and dining area. Inside, the floors are covered in locally-sourced, reclaimed heart pine and the certain accent walls feature reclaimed barn wood.

Lori sought energy efficiency through air tightness, superior insulation, reflective roofing, Energy Star windows, and solar hot water (which reduces energy use by up to 20% by itself). To conserve water, the home has low-flow fixtures, drought-tolerant landscaping, and a 1,100-gallon cistern that collects rainwater for irrigation.

Other green elements include an EPA-certified wood burning stove, interior mineral paints by San Marco, USA, polished fly ash concrete floors, recycled content FLOR carpet tiles, formaldehyde-free EccoDoors, low- or zero-VOC finishes, cellulose and Ecobatt insulation, Icynene spray foam in the roofline, a high-efficiency heat pump with an ERV, and LED and CFL bulbs in more than 50% of light fixtures.

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12 Comments

The owner/architect did a nice job on the design, especially scaling the facade to ensure it is both modest and inviting … but–and sorry to nitpick here–what was she thinking with that giant chimney protruding right through the middle of the most focal volume of the home? I can only hope it’s not as prominent in person, because in the photos, it’s a *giant* blemish on an otherwise beautiful home.

On the inside it’s actually a slate accent wall behind a sleek modern HearthStone wood burning stove, EPA certified for low-emissions/high efficiency burning, and wonderful for heating much of the house in the winter months.

This is a gorgeous house inside and out. From the colors of the wood to the placement of the windows to the layout of the house, it seems like a home that could have been designed by F.L. Wright. Go check one out and you will agree.
And at $125 per square foot, that seems like a steal. But my perspective might be a bit skewed. I live in DC where somewhat upscale apartments go for around $670 per square foot. So when I see a house likes this – where it has quality materials, an organic look and feel, and is – I can really appreciate the thought and time that went into designing it. I tip my hat to the Newcomer’s. You did a great job, even down to the red bar stools, which really brings the rooms together.

“… more impressively, the home uses about the same amount of energy as one a third the size”.
What if the house were 1/2 the size? At a basic level, a house 3 times the size uses 3x the amount of materials and has 3x the embodied energy and waste generation. Why LED / CFL in only 50% of the fixtures? A nice house otherwise, but if people are serious about less total energy, size matters!

2200 s.f. of it is living space for a family of four. 400 s.f. houses Newcomer’s architecture studio. Of course it could be a bit smaller, but overall, it’s below the national average and a home office with no commute is definitely a more environmentally friendly lifestyle.

As the builder and designer, I can guarantee you that it was in fact built for $125/s.f. We are fortunate to live in a very affordable part of the country. Your standard tract-built home around here (with hardwood floors, granite countertops, etc…) is generally done for around $100/s.f. Obviously, we made a lot of upgrades from your standard tract-built home. I was able to receive a designer’s discount on a few things, but not a huge savings. Plus, being our own contractors we saved around 15% of the construction costs over what it would have cost us if we had hired someone. I invite everyone to move to Athens, GA. The quality of life for cost of living can’t be beat!